Police Community Advisory Board

Vision

We envision a safe environment where residents and visitors experience a strong positive trusting relationship between the community and law enforcement, maximizing the EPD’s ability to serve its community effectively. 

Goals

• Break down barriers, generate trust, establish or improve relationships and foster understanding and communication between the Essex Town and City of Essex Junction communities and law enforcement.
• Foster active and robust participation, creativity and vision, and diverse representation among the CAB members. Diverse representation includes diversity based on race, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion/creed, and socioeconomic status, among others.
• Foster better policing by understanding the issues of the systemically marginalized, disenfranchised and oppressed members of the Essex Town and City of Essex Junction communities.
• Ensure application of equal protection under the law. 

Description

The EPD’s Community Advisory Board is an independent board made up of diverse community representatives, established in collaboration with the Chief of Police and EPD, whose primary goal will be to foster transparency and trust through:

1. Facilitating communication between the Essex community and the EPD. 
2. Supporting the EPD on strategies and policy, especially around issues of equity. 

The Essex CAB fosters two-way communication between the community and the EPD. As a resource, the CAB will assist in informing the community at large about the function and role of the EPD, as well as informing community members about department news, information, and updates. The CAB also serves as a conduit for voicing community needs and concerns around police services. In its capacity as an advisory committee, the CAB is intended to be an expression of the communities’ viewpoints. As such, when police-related incidents occur, the CAB will continue to serve as an independent voice for the community in response to such incidents. The EPD will partner with the CAB, to the extent they are able, to provide sufficient information surrounding police-related incidents to facilitate and allow for community feedback. 

As an advising resource for the Chief and EPD, the CAB will continuously seek to learn about and understand the EPD’s policies, procedures, and practices. To facilitate this understanding, the EPD will provide the CAB with relevant policies, procedures and practice updates, as well as quarterly and annual summaries of statistics such as the number of police uses of force, the number of police pursuits, crime rates, the number of citizen complaints received. Demographic data including race and other variables will be included in the provision of statistics to help monitor for potential biases in police work within the EPD. The CAB will provide advisory feedback designed to support police-community relations, improve EPD’s operations, and address public safety issues to further enhance the quality of life in the community. 

As identified by the EPD and the CAB, the CAB will focus on contemporary challenges that impact the community and its Police Department. Examples of topics include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Use of force
• Mental health response
• Criminal activity and trends
• Transparency
• Referrals to the Community Justice Center and other related restorative practices
• Best recruitment and retention practices
• Obstacles to effectively combating drug and gun crimes
• Support the EPD’s Community Liaison staff
• Support crime victims 

Board Structure & Requirements

The CAB is a committee with equal representation from the Town of Essex and the City of Essex Junction. The CAB is intended to include 3 residents from the Town of Essex and three residents from the City of Essex Junction. Individuals selected to serve on the CAB will be asked to commit to a 2- or 3-year term to allow for continuity.  

• Must be a resident of the Town of Essex or the City of Essex Junction. 
• Must be 16 years of age or older
• Interested in public safety
• Be a good communicator
• Support the mission, vision and goals of the CAB
• Be able to attend the majority of meetings (at least 80%)

Board Member Expectations

• Members of the Board are expected to attend the scheduled meetings and be prepared to engage in an honest and productive dialogue.
• Members of the Board are expected to treat each other with dignity and respect.
• Board members are not to utilize the meetings to facilitate personal agendas.
• Members of the Board will be encouraged to attend and participate in major police events, such as National Night-Out.
• Members are encouraged to go on a ride-along with a Essex Police Officer and take a tour of the Essex Police Department to familiarize themselves with Department operations. These activities will be subject to standard procedures.
• The Board must follow all applicable State Laws and Town policies.